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PRESCHOOL
Heim, Alastair

Quiet Down, Loud Town!

32 pp. | Clarion | December, 2020 | Trade ISBN 978-1-328-95782-5 $17.99 | Ebook ISBN 978-0-358-37855-6 $12.99
(2) PS Illustrated by Matt Hunt. Traffic ("honk, honk, honk!") wakes Elephant at 5:30 a.m. Then bird song ("chirp, chirp, chirp!") interrupts breakfast, while barking dogs ("yip, yip, yip!") disturb his morning walk--and the noise grows from page to page. Elephant blames noises for every personal blunder, from tripping to spilling a drink. When a marching band comes through ("WHAM, BAM, BAM! WHAP, TAP, TAP!"), miserable Elephant declares, "Quiet down, I'm going to snap!" The mixed-media illustrations are busy with vibrant color, visual comedy, and rhyming sound words for listeners to shout--until Elephant does snap, leading to a quiet, wordless spread full of Elephant's glowering neighbors going now-silently about their early evening. Unfortunately, it turns out that too much quiet also disrupts Elephant's sleep. After hours of tossing and turning, reading, snacking, and counting (the clock slips from 10:00 p.m. to 4:15 a.m.), Elephant turns on the radio, the television, two fans, and the kitchen stand mixer. The cacophony of sounds sends him snoring until all the neighbors arrive to have a word. "Holy cow...what a crowd! I did not know I was so loud. Maybe then, all of you did not mean to be loud too?" Neighborhood peace is restored with free coffee for everyone in the morning--Elephant's treat--and the promise of a new day and new understanding.
Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2021

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